A Stitch in Haste

The local hack politicians of Denver have joined the cabal of uneducated activist legislators who place inflammatory anecdote above reasoned logic by slaughtering "pit bulls" --

A few weeks ago, two police cars and two animal control vehicles pulled up at the home of Stef'ny Steffen looking for her beloved 4-year-old pit bull, Xena. Seven officers hauled the animal off to the city shelter, putting her on death row.

Xena became an outlaw after Denver won a court fight and reinstated one of the toughest pit-bull bans in the nation. Since May, more than 380 dogs have been impounded and at least 260 destroyed — an average of more than three a day.

Dog owners are in a panic. Some are using an underground railroad of sorts, sending their pets to live elsewhere or hiding them from authorities. City officials would not estimate how many people might be violating the ordinance.

I've blogged about breed-specific legislation before, and have little to add regarding this latest disgrace.

I will give the Denver dog murderers credit for one thing, however: unlike many other municipalities that have engaged in breed-specific legislation, Denver readily admits that there is actually no such breed as "pit bull" --

Pit bull typically describes three kinds of dogs - the American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier and the Staffordshire Bull Terrier. But Denver's ban applies to any dog that looks like a pit bull. The animal's actual behavior does not matter.

No word on who gets to decide whether a dog "looks like a pit bull" or what appeal process is available. Sounds to me like that is a question of fact to be decided by a jury.

As I've hinted in other contexts, I'm not a big fan of civil disobedience, except in the most extreme circumstances after every conceivable avenue of redress has been exhausted. I'm a strong believer in the value of the moral high ground.

But I'll tell you this: the only way the government would be able to take Diamond away from me, after I acquired her legally and lovingly, would be to pry her from my cold dead hands.

Or, to put it in slightly less melodramatic terms: At this point in my life I would never consider leaving New York City for another job or a higher salary, or even for a boyfriend if I had one. But I would leave, without hesitation, to protect Diamond from a "pit bull looking" ban.

How many hearts are being broken for no valid reason, just so the local hack politicians could satisfy their lust for the Politics of the Warm Fuzzy Feeling, so they could say they "did something"?

And of course I swear that I will never set foot in the City of Denver so long as they slaughter innocent dogs based only on their looks.

Bloggers expressing their indignation include Ken Foster, Cliffs of Insanity, Touring the Zoo, Matt and Jess, Confessions of a Nobody, Power2thePeople, Where the Dolphins Play, purple america, Objective Justice.

I hope every blogger with a dog (or with a heart) will pick up this meme and blog about it.